On May 25th, the President of Kyoto University, Dr. Juichi Yamagiwa, kindly met with KSU Professor of Anthropology, Dr. Anthony Tosi. Dr. Tosi was introduced to the President by Dr. Takakazu Yumoto, Director of the Primate Research Institute (PRI) of Kyoto University, and Dr. Hirohisa Hirai, Professor of Cellular and Molecular Biology at the PRI.
In 2015, President Yamagiwa formulated the WINDOW concept as a framework for training Kyoto University students to meet the global challenges of the 21st century. One of the pillars of WINDOW is greater internationalization of the University’s education and research environment. Some of the strategic priorities in this area include expanded exchange programs with foreign institutions, and the development of laboratory partnerships between universities.
Kyoto University and Kent State University signed a five-year MOU in August, 2016 to formalize a collaboration between the Primate Research Institute (Kyoto) and the departments of Anthropology and Biomedical Sciences (Kent). This collaborative research network was built largely through the support of Kyoto University, NSF-EAPSI, and JSPS funded summer internships for American graduate students working under the tutelage of PRI host scientists. Three such internships have grown into broader collaborations between the “home” (Kent) and “host” (Kyoto) laboratories of these students. Noting these successes, President Yamagiwa emphasized the potential for more extensive exchanges at the graduate student level. He and Dr. Tosi agreed to continue these discussions about future possibilities.
With deep gratitude for his initiative to increase international opportunities for university students, Dr. Tosi – on behalf of Kent State University – presented a gift to President Yamagiwa: a gorilla silhouette knapped in obsidian by Kent State’s Dr. Eren. President Yamagiwa has studied gorillas in the wild for nearly 30 years and is a world-renowned expert in their behavior and ecology.
